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Review
. 2018;39(2):171-180.

Alcohol Use Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury

Zachary M Weil  1 , John D Corrigan  1 , Kate Karelina  1
Affiliations
Review

Alcohol Use Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury

Zachary M Weil et al. Alcohol Res. 2018.

Abstract

Alcohol use and traumatic brain injury (TBI) are inextricably and bidirectionally linked. Alcohol intoxication is one of the strongest predictors of TBI, and a substantial proportion of TBIs occur in intoxicated individuals. An inverse relationship is also emerging, such that TBI can serve as a risk factor for, or modulate the course of, alcohol use disorder (AUD). Critically, alcohol use after TBI is a key predictor of rehabilitation outcomes, prognosis, and additional head injuries. This review provides a general overview of the bidirectional relationship between TBI and AUD and a discussion of potential neuropsychological and neurobiological mechanisms that might underlie the relationship.

Keywords: AODU initiation; alcohol and other drug use (AODU) development; brain; injury; trauma.

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Conflict of interest statement

Financial Disclosure The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Overlapping neurobehavioral links among TBI, PTSD, and alcohol use disorder. TBI and PTSD share trauma as a precipitating event. They are also linked by dysregulation of stress response systems, cognitive impairments, and affective symptoms, which, together, can increase the likelihood of alcohol misuse. Note: HPA, hypothalamic pituitary adrenal; PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder; TBI, traumatic brain injury.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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